@pegski - If he’s had some orientation to dance through community theatre that is a very helpful start (vs. having zero experience). While I agree it may not have provided a huge amount of help on his pre-screens, if he gets into a “live” dance call and can show them how quickly he picks things up, that speaks volumes . . . especially if he’s already a highly skilled vocalist. All the best of luck to him!
My son has done four on campus auditions so far. At two of them (or maybe three?), they actually had a student or faculty member tell a story about how miserable a dance audition was. A faculty member at Elon talked about how one of their graduating seniors got the lowest possible score on the dance component. At Penn State a senior student talked about how she got lost in the dance piece almost immediately and spent the most of the time pretending she was lost in a forest. It seems that, at least with some schools, they really want to emphasize that not being a dancer doesn’t mean that you can’t be accepted.
Hi, Pegski and all,
D is a junior at Columbia Chicago Chicago. She auditioned directly into the MT Performance BFA the one year they offered that option, and chose it over two other auditioned BFA admissions that have been well-reviewed on these pages. She remains satisfied with her choice, especially loves being surrounded by creative types in all fields and has just declared a minor in Stage Combat. (It has required overloads and additional CLEP testing to make room for that in her schedule). Most of all, I’ve seen all her grow in all her MT skills…including acting which was her strength going in.
All this said, the college overall can be a challenge to deal with organizationally, and students need to be self-disciplined. Reading comments on College Confidential beforehand helped her go in prepared for those types of issues. A particular challenge that sounds like it won’t affect your son is that the more advanced dance classes tend to fill up before lower classwo/men are eligible to register. Two of her incoming BFA cohort left because of this issue. Another of her incoming class (who did not audition beforehand and was not asked to join the BFA program) left because she felt she would get more attention at a smaller school. Several students have joined as transfers.
I would suggest that your son ask to audit or Skype into classes at programs he’s been admitted to. D actually Skyped in to classes at CCC and one of her other BFA admits since we live on the West Coast and couldn’t manage another trip. (The third BFA school wouldn’t allow it.)
Best wishes to your son for finding a good fit!
@pegski My S has Columbia College Chicago on his list as one of his safeties and has been accepted as well. I too would be interested in hearing if anyone has anything positive or negative re:this school/program.
@SpchTchr57 Thank you for your insight!
@pegski My D had no formal dance training (but lots of HS theatre experience) at the time of auditions. She is strong in voice and acting and got into Boson Conservatory’s BFA MT. As other commenters have pointed out, classes are leveled. She’ll never be a ballerina, but is having a blast with level 1 jazz, tap and ballet with opportunity to double up and accelerate to higher levels. Sounds like your son is a real go-getter and a “mover” so if he likes a program, don’t worry about the school’s dance reputation - go for it, if he can get the audition. Recommend Chicago Unified walk-in’s! Check in with the concierge desk each morning at the hotel in addition to walking the floor early. There’s a board on third floor (I think?) that lists the walk-ins each day and you can chat up the monitors at each school, even if walk-ins aren’t formally listed.
I am so thankful for the information! Especially on OCU and CCC! You guys are so helpful!! My son’s school has had opportunities to perform at Millikin and he is dead set against it–friends who go minor in music ed and he 100% knows he does not want to teach. Wesleyan is wonder (fully expensive!). ISU he liked but seems to have lost some relevance in the current workforce. (Although great alumni connections with Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago). To explain the Juilliard audition…it’s a “just to say he did” and “I’ve as much chance as the next guy” thing! haha He applied for acting. We toured the school while on a spring break trip and they told him they get 2000+ applicants for the acting program. They narrow down to 50 to bring to NYC for 3 days of more auditions/interviews, then pick 18! lol I actually strongly disliked the vibe of the campus. Quiet like a library and the stress the kids were under seemed palpable! We also toured AMDA but shortly after discovered that it is not accredited and credits will not transfer to other schools should the need arise. They sure do have an aggressive sales pitch!
@lithpool, where are you guys from? Stay in touch if our boys wind up there!
@pegski Where are you guys in Central Illinois? I’m in the Central Illinois area as well — Peoria/Blono. Would love to chat and could possibly be able to give some tips and recommendations. If you can PM me that would be great!
@theatremom10 my d was accepted into their MTD program last year but chose to attend Ball. A friend did accept the MTD and her mom told me she didn’t think the MT’s had a dance class last semester which did surprise me so maybe I misunderstood.
@barrytenor, I can’t figure out how to send a PM, so replying here. We are in the Springfield area 
@pegski - You won’t be able to send a PM until you hit 15 posts.
@MTdreamz you may be right about UArts and unifieds (regarding dance auditions). My d auditioned via video, did not submit a dance piece, and got in. She believes that dance calls were optional on campus (not verified). She is in lowest level dance classes (based on a questionnaire they filled out; she was honest, as not to get in over her head and pretend to be anything more than a decent mover).
@pegski my d auditioned at Juilliard last year for acting, also just to say she did (acting is her strength). It was her first audition of the season. She did not get called back, and lived to tell the tale.
@MomofJ5 I’m just reading your post about your son’s experience last year. I’m sure I read about it along the way (but most of it was a blur, lol). My d had a similar (yet opposite) experience in auditions. Passed all but one prescreen (4 out of 5), she felt fairly confident, despite her weakness in dance (one of them included a dance video), but felt strong in acting (had 4 years of acting at a PA HS). For all schools that she could, she checked off the ‘please consider me for acting’ box. We approached April 1st with no acceptances and one waitlist (that she was eventually released from). In April she landed 3 acceptances, and finally found her home, which is in an MT program.
Where did your son land? And does he have the option to audition for musicals? My d has the option to audition for plays, which makes her happy (because she really enjoyed her acting in HS), but really wanted the MT curriculum to get the dance and voice training.
@DramaQueen219 Hi. My son has been unable to schedule an audition with UArts due to conflicts. When your daughter submitted a video audition did she essentially just upload her prescreen videos and add an introduction video? Thanks!
Could some of you with experience at NYC Unifieds talk a little bit about that experience. My son has two auditions scheduled for each day of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday and it doesn’t seem to me that there is really any time to do more (based on the time frames that the scheduled audition schools have given us). There are two schools that he would love to try to get a walk-in audition for if possible. I’m curious as to how that works. I’m also wondering if anything happens after dinner or is it more of a 8 or 9 to 5 kind of thing. Thanks!
@ZukAndSowash are the auditions at the same or different studios? Your S may be able to handle a few walk-ins if you aren’t concerned about traveling back and forth. Dance calls are sometimes scheduled in the evenings but auditions usually wrap up by 6.
@ZukAndSowash that’s exactly what she did. Same videos that got her through the heavy hitters (with subsequent rejections after live auditions) got her in. And it’s a great fit for her!
Before I start driving them crazy - has anyone talked to USC about the MT weekend and how that’s going to work? I was wondering if I send D solo if there’d be an opportunity to share a room with someone, etc…
@DramaQueen219 - I totally remember you and your D’s story. I remember clapping when I read that she got into her program in April. It’s easier if you get consistent prescreen rejections because you learn with lots of time that you need to change something. But if the applications go in late, or if you get mixed results, it’s hard to know what to do". So many parents get PTSD from this experience. My S is at Syracuse (Acting) and loving it. He has the ability to take voice and dance (dance beginning 2d semester), and does have the ability to audition for plays and musicals. The fit is perfect for him. It’s cold and snowy - but he feels like that is a small price to pay for the great program. Oh - the Syracuse local community, Syracuse Stage, and student /student parent community is the warmest! We have parent Facebook groups that help with everything. Going in, this wasn’t my first choice for him (S didn’t have a first choice because he’s a live in the moment type), but knowing what I know now- it should have been my first choice for him. Glad it worked out well for your D too!
@theater9969 - I posted a response on the Acting board, but wanted this group to know that hotels won’t rent to a person who is under 21. I once got away with it, for my non-drama S who looked older than 19 at the time and was traveling alone and needed one night before meeting up with his group. I didn’t check in advance (didn’t know!), but had to phone with the credit card number when he arrived at midnight. It was obvious my S wasn’t in a partying situation and the front desk just went ahead and did it (after initially giving me some issues). I wouldn’t plan on this if I were you. You could ask USC if they have any dorm rooms for rent…